Page 79 of A Passing Fancy

A laugh broke through her tears, and Judith nodded.

The fellow stood there, blinking at her as a smile spread across his face. Taking her by the hand, Silas tugged her to the other side of the office. “I will find Mr. Winston immediately. If I offer him enough money, I am certain he will wed us this very moment, license or not.”

Judith pulled back on their joined hands, forcing him to stop. “You know that isn’t possible.”

With a sigh, he turned to her, wrapping his arms around her. “It cannot hurt to try.”

“You are ridiculous, Silas Byrnes.”

“So you have said many times, Judith Delmonte.” And there was that delightful Italian flare once more, drawing a smile from them both. Silas studied her face, his eyes tracing her every feature until Judith felt her cheeks burning. She tried to duck away, but Silas leaned closer, drawing her attention back up. “I suppose I ought to give you a big wedding in front of all of sundry.”

An impulse took hold of Judith, though she tried to fight it, her hand raised of its own accord. The tips of her fingers brushed against his cheek, touching as she had longed to do. She caressed his skin, and Judith pressed a buss to the corner of his lips.

“I do not need a large wedding, Silas. Just you and the children.” Judith paused and added, “And Mr. Hatcher, of course. Our family.”

He dropped his head, his forehead resting against hers, and Judith swore his lips trembled a touch. Nudging his face upward, Judith captured his gaze and found those warm, laughing eyes of his were glistening, his heart shining in their depths. It was an expression Judith had never thought to see directed towards herself, for it was a mirror of her own heart with the same adoration and admiration resonating through the whole of her.

“Our family,” he whispered, his tone holding a hint of reverence as he spoke the words. But then, Judith supposed for a man whose family had been so fractured, those words were anything but simple. Their paths may have been quite different, but Judith knew too well they both understood how solitary an “I” can be. It had been too long since Judith had been a “we,” and she was certain her heart couldn’t contain the joy bubbling forth from that little pronoun.

Their family. Their children. Their life. For someone who had been alone for so long, the words were a godsend.

“Yes. Our family,” she repeated.

Silas’s smile grew once more, and he drew her into his arms, but it was Judith who pressed her lips to his. For all his apologies, it was she who felt as though she needed to make amends. Though her fears had seemed so logical not a quarter of an hour ago, Judith could not comprehend why she had denied herself this happiness for so long.

Judith had spent so many years living adjacent to love and acceptance. Seeing it there, out of reach. And now, it surrounded her. Engulfed her. Filled her very soul. Judith had found her family at last.